Take My Hand
by Erehwon3013
Summary: The quest for the shards is over and Kagome no longer has a reason to stay. How will Inuyasha convince her to stay?


I don't own Inuyasha! I just borrowed him, I swear.

"Say you need me

with you

here, beside you…

Anywhere you go,

Let me go too…

That's all I ask of you."

---- excerpt from **Phantom of the Opera**

**Take My Hand**

"Kagome?"

I hear Inuyasha's voice and turn to look at him with wide, disbelieving eyes.

Again, his voice: "Kagome, did you just do what I think you did?"

I gulp and nod my head. At this moment, I am utterly incapable of speech.

Behind me, Sango and Miroku, exchange glances. Then Sango looks at me and asks with a tremulous voice:

"What the hell did you just do? One moment, Naraku's there, cackling insanely, with you giving him the most evil glare that anyone on this earth's been given, then, POOF, he transforms from his usual form into a glowing pile of pink ash."

With that profound statement, everyone turns to look at Miroku with expectant eyes.

By the time we've turned around, he'd taken off his cuff and rosary, only to stare in disbelief at his now, unmarked, right palm and say "It's over."

Then a tiny voice pipes up:

"You mean to tell me that all our travels and the fights with Naraku are over because Kagome glared at him?"

Finally I find my voice: "Yes, Shippou, our travels are over, and my task is done. We have all the Shikon no Kakera; there is no reason for me to stay here any longer."

Inuyasha's angry voice breaks the silence that my painful, spoke thought provokes.

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about Kagome! You have plenty of reasons to stay here! You've got Kaede, Sango, Shippou and Miroku here. What about the villagers? Kohaku?"

I look at Inuyasha again, and sadly say what I have dreaded saying for so long now.

"No Inuyasha, I have served my purpose, I mustn't mess up time anymore than I have by coming here in the first place. I must return home!" And with my heart breaking into a million pieces with every step that I take away from my family away from family, I walk away to the well, with the others protests ringing in my ears.

But when I reached the Bone Eater's Well, I saw that Inuyasha had already beat me to it.

"Please, Inuyasha, I beg of you, don't make this any more painful than it has to be. I don't want to leave, but I must."

Then wordlessly, Inuyasha reached his hand out to me and said:

"Kagome, I'm not here to fight; I'm not here to beg. I came here to ask you to do something for me. Kagome, take my hand, and come with me, there is something that I want to show you."

Silently, I nod my head and put my hand in his and follow him into the forest.

When he stopped, I looked up, only to see the Goshinboku.

"Inuyasha, I don't see why you've brought me here! We've both been here a million times! What's here to see now?"

Then, Inuyasha, in a voice that's was totally out of character, said to me, "Kagome, you say that you have no reason to stay, here with us. Please, Kagome let me be your reason. I love you, since who knows when. Please, let me stay by your side. And, if you won't stay here, let me go with you. Please, Kagome, let me stay, let me love you."

Tearfully, I look at him, with joy overflowing the cup of my heart. At last, my dreams, my hopes, my prayers, come true. Then, I hold out my hand to him and he draws me to him, love and happiness shining in his eyes, and we both turn to leave. But before we disappear into the surrounding trees, we turn to each other and share a kiss full of promises. Our friends, no, our family, is waiting for us.

"Say you'll share with

me one

love, one lifetime…

say the word

and I will follow you…

Love me,

That's all I ask of you…"

--- from **Phantom of the Opera**

Fin

Whew! That was a pain to write! I think that after writing this one-shotter, that I have finally realized that I have no talent for writing. But anyway, who cares. Please review. And even though this is a horrible, whimpering excuse of a fic, it's dedicated to DelKaidin, Scherezade, Jaxxia7 (aka Nefra) and countless others.


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